Merger intimacy status in adult women.

Developed an intimacy interview and a rating system that allowed the reliable classification of 40 25–35 yr old women in 6 intimacy statuses. The interview/rating system included 2 new statuses: committed and uncommitted merger. The intimacy status interview and rating system, the Objective Measure of Ego-Identity Status (OMEIS), and 3 subscales from the Personality Research Form (PRF) were administered to Ss. It was predicted that merger Ss would score lower than Ss in other statuses on the Autonomy and Dominance and higher on the Succorance scales of the PRF. Results show that intimacy status was related to OMEIS scores. Most (7 of 9) committed merger Ss scored as identity diffuse or foreclosed. Nine uncommitted merger Ss scored as identity diffuse or moratorium. Ss in the moratorium category had strong religious involvement. Merger Ss had significantly higher scores on the Succorance scale of the PRF. Results are discussed in the context of childhood processes of attachment and separation. (11 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)